Photo By Staff Sgt. Frank Brown | Staff Sgt. Ethan Rodgers, the 7th Army Training Command noncommissioned officer...... read more read more
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GRAFENWOEHR, Germany – Some 21 stellar Soldiers from across the region converged on Camp Aachen Aug. 7 for the opening salvos of a troop tournament designed to determine U.S. Army Europe’s ultimate warriors.
The annual European Best Warrior Competition confers not only regional bragging rights but an opportunity to compete at Department of the Army level for top honors across the entire service.
Candidates from USAREUR and U.S. Army Africa headquarters, the 173rd Airborne Brigade, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, 5th Signal Command, 7th Army Training Command, Europe Regional Medical Command, Installation Management Command-Europe and NATO Brigade as well as the 21st Theater Sustainment Command will participate in an intensely challenging weeklong competition.
Event organizers will unveil winners in officer, noncommissioned officer and Soldier categories during an awards ceremony slated for the afternoon of Aug. 11 at the Tower Barracks Physical Fitness Center.
Candidates compete in a variety of challenging field and administrative tasks testing their Soldier skills, stamina, endurance and ingenuity as well as intellectual and problem-solving abilities. They’ll face marksmanship, weapons, land navigation, scenario, chemical defense and medical tasks among many other daunting obstacles with minimal rest or preparation. The competition taxes minds as heavily as bodies; candidates confront written tests, military boards, uniform inspections, communication tasks and other administrative activities as well as foot marches, “combatives” and the inevitable Army Physical Fitness Test.
Candidates look forward to testing their limits and an opportunity to earn elite status if not to pre-dawn wake-ups and Meals, Ready-to-Eat.
“I'm excited,” said Staff Sgt. Vanessa Carillo of the 39th Transportation Brigade, 16th Sustainment Brigade, the 21st TSC NCO candidate. “I get a little adrenaline going – especially when it comes time to compete and you know, show my best out there."
"I expect to see other top performers there, other top NCO's I'm going against,” she added. “And I'm like, man, that person is fast. You kinda envy them, but you want to be like them. I tend to pick up other qualities in other leaders that I want to attain."
Spc. Geraldo Gonzalez of the 554th Military Police Company, 18th Military Police Brigade, the TSC Soldier candidate, emphasized the importance of flexibility and enthusiasm.
"I’m open to and ready for anything they throw at us, because we don't know what the events are so you can't be down about an event,” he said. “You have to be excited for it, motivated for it."
The USAREUR and 21st TSC key enlisted leaders who organized the NCO-led competition looked forward to a dynamic event certain to energize Soldiers and galvanize units as well as select candidates for the DA competition, slated for Sept. 26-Oct. 3 at Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia.
“This is an awesome event – literally continental in scale,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Alberto Delgado, the 21st TSC senior enlisted leader and a key competition official. “What a terrific opportunity to highlight our finest Soldiers and the great team of teams that make up Army Europe. This isn’t just about the candidates – it’s also about the great organizations that trained and supported them. It builds readiness; it builds esprit; it builds victory.”
“On a practical note, it’s also an exciting competition,” he added. “It’s amazing to think the winners announced Thursday will compete to be the ‘Best Warriors’ in the entire U.S. Army. I’m very proud of our competitors and the guys who put it all together. I can’t wait to see how it turns out.”
| Date Taken: | 08.07.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 08.07.2016 15:14 |
| Story ID: | 206346 |
| Location: | GRAFENWOEHR, DE |
| Web Views: | 237 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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